CTVA
The Classic TV Archive
- US Military seriesThe Wackiest Ship
in the Army (1965-66)Episode Guide
compiled by
The Classic TV Archive
with contributions by:
"Gary Spears" <razzy13@earthlink.net> (ep #19)
references:
Library of Congress (telnet://locis.loc.gov)
Internet Movie Database (http://www.us.imdb.com)
-----------------------------THE WACKIEST SHIP IN THE ARMY
-----------------------------Screen Gems Inc. a division of Columbia Pictures
for
NBC (Sundays 10:00 pm EST)
Produced by Harry Ackerman and Herbert Hirschman
Based on the 1960 film of the same title starring Jack Lemmon.

Premise:
In the spring of 1942, the New Zealand government presents the U.S.
a 70-year-old wooden twin-masted schooner. The US military decides
to use the ship, the "USS Kiwi" to place spies ashore behind
Japanese lines. While
underway, the ship is commanded by Lieutenant Rip Riddle of the
US Navy; while in port, the ship is commanded by Major Simon Butcher
of the US Army which leads to many disputes between the two men.

[19] The Wackiest Ship in the Army: LIBERTY WAS A LADY
06Feb66 NBC Sunday
guest stars
Jill Ireland
Lou Antonio (as Jocko)
Synopsis:
Possibly the best episode of this series. Jill Ireland plays an Australian woman
who meets Lt. Rip Ripple ( Gary Collins)
in a bar. The woman's husband is an Australian special forces diver (Lou
Antonio) and has been missing in action for some
time. A brief affair insues between the woman and Ripple until the woman's
husband returns. As fate would have it it, the
"USS Kiwi" is assigned to take the her husband known as Jocko into a Japanese
harbor so he can plant explosives onto the
bottom of a ship that will explode when bombs are dropPed from bombers. The
"Kiwi" gets him there and he starts on his
mission, but as he trys to get though a underwater net he becomes entangled and
sets of an alarm that alerts the Japanese
who send down a diver of there own. Meanwhile back on the "Kiwi", Ripple is
finally told of the connection between the
Jocko and his love interest. Jocko is now overdue and so Ripple dons the spare
scuba equipment and goes searching for the
diver. The Japanese diver finds him first and attacks with a knife. Ripple gets
there and takes care of the Japanese diver
and frees Jocko, and wants to help place the bombs. The Australian cuts his
airhose so he must return to the "Kiwi" thus
saving Ripples life since the Australian is killed by the explosion after he
places the bombs. Ripple returns to tell his
wife, but their affair is over since she is feeling guilty over his death. "Gary
Spears" <razzy13@earthlink.net>(April 2003)